Strategic relationships including business alliances have become an important type of relationship between independent businesses for jointly providing solutions to customer's needs. Several patents and patent applications describe inventions for addressing business alliances. For example, Guheen et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 6,721,713 describe identifying alliances among a plurality of business entities in terms of a current network framework. The network framework is a web architecture framework. In one embodiment, Guheen gives a pictorial representation to convey various services which would be provided in a business offering.
Tan, in US Patent Application 2003/0023533 describes a method and system for simulating and managing an alliance investment portfolio. Apparently, the challenges in corporate finance management for alliances deal with achieving an optimal capital structure that can facilitate the needs of growth industries while also creating investor interest through containment of risk and achievement of a return matching the risk undertaken. Tan's method addresses managing a portfolio of assets including alliance investments.
Field et al in US Patent Application 2004/0073474 describe a method for creating a multi-level business alliance in non-exclusive geographical areas. Field's multi-level alliance includes a founding firm creating an alliance with one or more foundation firms. The foundation firms pay a fee to the founding firm. The foundation firms and the founding firm share resources and clients, and they also share revenue based on a formula. The founding firm or each foundation firm may sign up a second level firm to the alliance. The licensing fees paid by a second level firm is shared by the founding firm and the foundation firm signing the second level firm based on a formula.
Each second level firm may sign up a third level firm. The signing second level firm, the parent foundation firm that introduces the signing second level firm to the alliance, and the founding firm all share the licensing fee paid by the third level firm according to a formula. By creating such multi-level alliances, multiple firms work together to provide a broader range of services to each other's clients while remaining independent of each other.
The patents and patent applications described above by Guheen, Tan, and Field are all incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.
Despite the aforementioned developments, there remains a great need for methods of managing the many alliance and other strategic relationships which are being created today. It is believed that the present invention described below providing such a method constitute a significant advancement in the art of managing business relationships.